It is known to provide content accessible over a network such as the Internet. A common way to access content over the Internet on a device such as a personal computer is by using a web browser and a search engine to locate desired content. Where the content is video content, such as movies or video clips, the content can be viewed using a video player application, also known as a plug-in, provided in the web browser. The play of the video content is controlled through the web site using the plug-in player. Problems with the quality of the viewing experience can include poor resolution of images or pixilation of images, jitter or halting of the moving image, such problems are often due to bandwidth limitations or processing capacity.
A known system attempts to overcome the above problems by compiling and formatting video data in a specific format for providing to users over the Internet which can be played by a special player designed to play the specific format video data files. This system has drawbacks from the user side, due to having to purchase the special player, and from the video content provider side, as it is necessary to re-format any video content for use with the player.
There is a need for a system which provides an improved Internet video content access and viewing experience.